Halo and Creature: Light and Darkness
by flyingfalcon
Summary: The Ronins and the Slayers go to visit Sage in Anerica, but who is this mysterious warrior? And who is this new friend of Sage's?...


I do not own the Ronins. I do own however, the Slayers (except Mia), Xanai and the baddies. Please do not sue me because I am broke. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------  
  
A college classroom on the last day of the term.  
  
Sage Date finishes his final exam, picks up his things and turns the test in to his professor. He then walks out the door of the classroom right on the heels of an acquaintance of his. "Xanai!" The girl turns around and Sage feels a jolt in his gut when he sees the telltale scar on her face, the scar she is known for. Her long silver hair floats behind her like a surreal cloud. He feels a tugging on his heart when she smiles at him, he has been attracted to her for the entire year; ever since their first class together. He has had a crush on her for nearly as long, ever since the day he saw her deter some older men from beating up a friend of hers. He hasn't told any of the others at home about her because he doesn't know anything about her. He has never even heard speculation as to how she got that scar. He also finds it odd that she is the only person he has met that he cannot gauge. Most people he can feel out and tell what they are feeling, but not Xanai, she is too guarded. "Yes? Is there something you wanted Sage?" "Um.er.h-have a good summer break." "Yes, and you as well, I trust I'll see you around next year?" "Uh.no. I'm going back to Japan." He doesn't know if it is his imagination or what, but he could swear that she looked shocked and sorry that he would be leaving. "Oh. Well then, goodbye." With no other words, she turns and hurries away. Sage looks after her with a puzzled expression on his face, how odd that she should act that way when they don't even really know each other.  
  
Xanai curses herself for allowing him to see her shock. She had suspected that the boy with the violet eyes would be leaving, but hearing it made it seem so.final. It saddens her more then she wants to admit to see the boy go; she was really starting to fall for him, but then maybe it is a good thing that he is leaving.  
  
Mia looks out the window of the house that she shares with Artemis, Jshano, Zota and Ryo and sighs. They all need a real vacation. Suddenly an idea hits her, why not go on vacation? It isn't as though no one can get away, Kento makes his own hours, Hoshi goes wherever he goes and Tharios goes wherever Hoshi goes. Zota, Artemis and Jshano have nothing better to do then train. Jason, Kale and Yuri could definitely use a major vacation from training and the Dynasty, along with the other warlords and Kayura. Anubis will go too because he needs to help keep the others out of trouble and Kyoko goes wherever her uncle goes. Besides, Yuli's parents need a break from taking care of the dying boy. Mia frowns as a twinge of sadness pricks her heart at the though of Yuli's impending death. They have tried everything in their considerable power to heal Yuli, but nothing works and now they must contend with the fact that they may not be able to save him. The poison that invaded his body six months ago is winning and there is nothing that either the Ronins or the Slayers can do about it. Mia stiffens her shoulders, she will call everyone right now and see if they want to go see Sage in New York.  
  
The day dawns bright and shining, the perfect day to start a vacation. The whole group, all twenty of them, have decided to go to New York for their vacations. Sage was going to school there for a term and so they all decided to go and visit him. Even the warlords wanted to get away from the Dynasty for a while. So everyone meets at the airport and get on the plane. The plane ride is totally uneventful to start with, that is until Cye and Kento decided that it would be a good time to start in on another one of their fights. Everyone just laughs at their antics until one of the flight attendants comes in and has to ask them to stop fighting and take their seats. The Slayers and the warlords all laugh at the guilty expressions on both Cye and Kento and soon all of them are laughing. When their plane lands at JFK Airport they all get off with light hearts and are practically jumping with excitement as they get their baggage. Yuli is hanging back a bit, unable to really keep up with his friends and Artemis is watching him like a hawk. "Hey guys!" They look up and around to see Sage walking toward them, waving. The reunion is boisterous and happy, even Yuli seems better for a few moments as he says hello to his old friend. As they all walk out of the airport they wonder where they will be able to stay, Sage's apartment is too small to fit all of them and most of the hotels are booked. As they are worrying about this the sky begins to become unnaturally dark. Everyone looks around them and gets ready for a possible battle. Mia looks worried as her Armor of Sight does its job of warning her to danger. Anubis, Kayura and Kyoko are all feeling it too. Without warning, a strangely armored creature appears in front of them. It looks like a lizard, but it stands on two feet and wears a dull gray metal armor. It moves almost too fast for them to see much less fight. It strikes all of them at least once and because no one is wearing their armor it damages them considerably. It has said nothing throughout its attack, not letting on anything about itself. Just as the creature is about to make a second circuit of strikes a figure in black steps in front of it, stopping its powerful attack cold. The group looks at the figure in confusion and awe. The facemask is down so seeing who the figure is is impossible. The armor itself is black with silver veins running along its surface and inside the helm, making it glow. All they can see of the figure is that its eyes are slit-pupiled and glowing a deep, rich purple. It pulls out a set of daggers and the fight that follows is as fierce as the ones they had with the warlords when they were still in the possession of Talpa. There is no question as to who would win this battle. A few strokes later the strange lizard-warrior falls and the black armored creature stands tall over its corpse. The figure turns to the injured warriors and walks over to Kayura. Handing her a piece of paper, the figure turns to Yuli and Yuri, who have both been badly injured, and picks them up. It throws them over its shoulders and walks away, despite much protest from the Warriors. Kayura looks at the piece of paper and smiles. Kale is distraught, threatening death to the warrior in black and worrying about what he will do to Yuri until Kayura tells him to shut up. "Look! The warrior left us directions to where he was taking Yuli and Yuri. Let's go find this place." Sage takes the piece of paper to see if he knew it and is shocked because he actually does. "Hey! I know where this is! I've never been inside, I've only seen it in passing, but I know where it is." Mia smiles happily at Ryo. "Well guys let's go!"  
  
On their way to the place on the map, Anubis and the others wonder about the place until finally Kento just asks. "Hey Sage! Why is it you only know this place in passing? What is up with this place?" "Well Kento, according to the stories this place has been around for over a thousand years. It is said to have been the home of a great warrior long, long ago. You see he was betrayed by his master and was killed in his own home. No one goes near there anymore because everyone is afraid that there is a curse or something on the place. But I wonder, why has the mysterious warrior taken Yuli and Yuri there?" By the time Sage has finished with his story they have arrived at the front gates of the old mansion. It is a regal place, but is a bit run down and dirty. They see a light in the front window and decide to take it cautiously because they don't know where Yuli and Yuri are in relation to the warrior. Everyone calls up their sub-armor, just in case, and they start to walk toward the place. Sage is in the front and has little or no warning when a figure drops down and presses a knife against his throat. A rough, somehow musical voice rings out, warning the other warriors. The voice is familiar to Sage and it takes him a moment to recognize the speaker, when he does he is surprised. "Come another step and I will kill this boy." Everyone backs off a step or two and Sage turns to his right, where he knows the voice is coming from. "Xanai? Is that you?" the figure jerks slightly, but the knife doesn't move a hair. "Sage? What are you doing here?" "I'll explain in a minute, but first, can you please remove the knife from my throat?" "Oh! I'm so sorry! But not to worry, it was the backside of the knife. It wouldn't have hurt you." The woman backs off of Sage, looking very confused. "But Sage, what are you doing here? And in that sub-armor?" "We got attacked and this black warrior grabbed two of our group and left directions here." Then he explains away the armor, trying not to reveal their true identities, and who everyone is. "Oh. I understand now. Follow me, all of you. I have enough room for you and your wounds need time to heal. Your friends are already here." "They are?" "Yes. The person who left them here told me to be on the lookout for you, I'm sorry I attacked you, I didn't realize you are some of the good guys." The girl leads them into the old mansion. Mia feels extremely unsettled; there is something the girl is not telling them, something important that she is keeping to herself. And Mia has the feeling that it may mean everything in the end.  
  
The group follows Xanai through two different gates and then into the house. Cye turns to Kento and says softly so that only he can hear "Have you noticed that there is a symbol everywhere in this place. The symbol for 'protection' is absolutely everywhere." Kento nods and starts looking around more carefully, seeing the symbols. They all follow the girl into the main room where they see Yuli and Yuri lying unconscious on a couple of couches. Kale immediately runs over to Yuri and checks her over for injury. She slowly wakes and winces in pain from the shallow wound in her chest. Kale and Yuri talk quietly together; Yuri has to reassure Kale of the fact that she is all right. Mia and Artemis hurry over to Yuli, he won't be waking up for a while because of his injuries. Xanai gets chairs for everyone and some food and drink and they sit in front of the fire. The group really gets to see her for the first time; her long silver hair is definitely an oddity. Her eyes are an intimidating purple in color and seem to almost have slit-pupils, rather than round, human pupils. Her body is trim and she carries herself like a warrior. When they look at her face they get a shock, there is a hellatious scar running down the left side of her face, running from the hairline almost to her jaw. It gives her a fierce, unemotional look. Xanai gets Kale and Yuri to eat something and join the group and, with quite a bit of prodding, manages to get Mia and Artemis to leave Yuli's side. Sage asks the question on everyone's mind. "Xanai, what are you doing here? I thought this place was abandoned. And why did that warrior leave those two in your care?" "The warrior knows that I can help those who are not mortally wounded, and as for why I am here, well, I live here. I came upon this place a while ago and it was totally abandoned so I thought that it would be a good place to live." She turns to the others, "I know Sage through school, I think we're in a class together. I wanted to ask you guys, what is wrong with the little one? I sense that something is grievously wrong with him, that he is badly injured in some way, but I can't pinpoint it exactly." Mia sighs. "He was poisoned almost six months ago and we haven't been able to find a cure for it. We're afraid that this may be his last trip, that his time is coming to a close." Tears start to slide down Mia's face and she closes her eyes against it. Ryo puts his arm around her and hugs her close, she turns and sobs into his chest and he just holds her. Everyone turns away, each with his or her own expression of grief and Xanai decides that it is time for bed. "It is late, all of you, go to bed, I will watch for these 'lizard- warriors'. I'll wake you if anything happens." Everyone reluctantly agrees and Xanai spends the next hour showing everyone to his or her rooms. When everyone is settled she sits on the couch beside Yuli's small, poisoned body and puts her hand on his heart. Closing her eyes, Xanai looks for the poison and how it is constructed. Sadly, it is very familiar to her. She herself had had a run in with the species that made this poison and her body had created an antidote. She opens her eyes and Yuli does the same, she has brought him out of unconsciousness so that she can take care of him. She looks into his eyes with a smile. She raises her right wrist to her mouth and with a slight grunt of pain she tears a hole into her wrist. Yuli watches with dull eyes as she places her bleeding wrist to his lips and he does as she commands. Open and drink little one. It will help you. Yuli takes four large gulps of the offered blood and falls back onto the couch in a fit of coughing. Xanai pulls her wrist away and quickly bandages it. She is pale from the effort it has taken to help the boy and the dizziness is about to swamp her completely. Before the darkness can defeat her she pulls the poison out of Yuri's body. She will heal it tomorrow, before infection can set in. She looks at the ceiling in a type of prayer as the spinning becomes unbearable and she falls into unconsciousness.  
  
Sage walks down the stairs leading to the main room and gets a bit of a shock. Yuli is still asleep on the couch, but his color is better then it has been in a long while. Xanai on the other hand is unconscious on the floor; her skin color is about the same as a glacier. "Mia! Everyone! Get up!" Sage hurries down the stairs and, after checking on Yuli grabs onto Xanai shivering body. Her skin is ice cold to the touch. He cradles her head and upper body as everyone comes stampeding down the stairs. Yuli's eyes open slowly just as Mia gets to him and he jumps up and smiles happily. "Mia!" he grabs her in a hug chanting the same things. "I'm all better! I'm all better!" Artemis scans him with her power and is shocked at what she finds. She turns to Mia with the good news. "The poison has been completely obliterated. There is no sign of it anywhere in his body." Mia turns to Yuli and asks "Yuli when did this happen?" "Last night. After everyone went to sleep she came into my mind and looked through my body. I could sense her thoughts, she was worried about another thing, but her main focus was me, and Mia, she knew the poison. It was familiar to her so she made me drink some of her blood and it healed me." He finally sees Sage and Xanai. "Hey! What is wrong with her Sage? What is going on?" Sage's voice is laced with worry. "I don't know Yuli." He sets her down and armors up. He places his sword over her body and starts scanning her body. He finds nothing but cold and glaciers. Zota and Hoshi try to scan her and all they see in her mind are glaciers. They have to get her body heated up or else she will die. Kayura hurries to run a hot bath so that they can place her in the hot water. Artemis and Zota start to do a scan and are immediately repelled. Xanai's arms flail at them and she is very suddenly awake and yelling. "ORNOS!"  
  
Xanai is floating in a relatively peaceful place until the warriors from her past intrude. She can see and feel the flames as her village goes up and her friends and what is left of her family go up in green flames. She then feels the burning sensation of the brands as they are pressed into her back. The pain brings her back. "ORNOS!" Xanai sits ramrod straight, gasping for air and looking around her. Sage is the first face to clear before her face. He is holding onto her shoulders and shaking her gently. His face is only a few inches from her own and shows obvious concern. She blinks once, twice and then looks around her. She hones in on Yuri and Kale. She struggles to her feet, ignoring Sage, Mia and Artemis when they tell her not to move. Artemis is the only one who can see how much healing Yuli actually took out of the girl and she doesn't like it. In fact, in her opinion the girl shouldn't even be conscious. She watches as Xanai stumbles over to Kale and Yuri, receiving some help from both Cye and Rowan when she nearly falls a couple of times. Kale steps between her and Yuri, but she completely disregards him as she sends a small, invisible tendril of power at Yuri. It wraps itself into Yuri's chest injury and Yuri cries out in pain as it heals. Unseen by the others, a large scar on Xanai's back has reopened because of the strain and drain on her body and its healing abilities, staining her shirt with bright red blood. Kale advances on Xanai and he loses it when Yuri cries out. He punches her in the face, knocking her back, and then proceeds to try to beat her to death. Sage and Yuri grab onto him and pull him off the unconscious girl. Kale is breathing hard and cursing at the girl for hurting Yuri when Yuri herself steps in again. She punches Kale in the face. He looks at her, stunned, when she shows him her wound, or rather the scar where her wound had been. It is completely healed. Kale looks back at the girl who is just waking up with regret in his eyes. Before Kale can do or say anything Xanai speaks. Her voice is excruciatingly weak. "I'm sorry Kale, Yuri. I do not have enough power to not hurt you right now, but you needed to be healed as soon as possible. Ornos blades tend to cause infections if the wounds are not healed as soon as possible." The girl falls back and passes out. Sage delicately picks the girl up, but when he does he feels the blood and looks at her back. The growing bloodstain forces him to put her down and roll her to her side. "Whoa! Artemis I think she is going to need help." After Artemis and Sage heal and bandage her back Sage picks her up again and takes her to his room where he lays her in the bed and covers her up in a futile attempt to keep her warm. He then returns to his friends.  
  
Xanai runs through the forest with her half-brother Xavier. They are in tune with both nature and their armors. The fun that they are having cannot last, they have a destiny to follow, and that destiny is to fight. Xanai, back then, was a peace loving young girl just living and fighting, fighting to live and living to fight. That is all her and her brother ever wanted to do: defeat evil and help others. It was that day, that fateful day that their destinies would collide with that of another and change her world forever. While Xanai and Xavier race each other through the forest surrounding their home, an unnatural darkness falls over the land. They armor up together, forever in sync, and prepare for battle. The battle is long and fierce and by the end, Xavier is dying and their opponent has been locked away into limbo. Xanai holds her brother's dying body close to her chest and sobs as he breathes his last. When his body finally gave way, so did his armor. It vanishes off of his body and Xanai is left with her dead sibling, the person she loved most in the world. Then, as a cruel trick of fate, the armor that once belonged to her brother returns, she can feel it soaking into her very skin. The orb that tied her brother to the power of the ancients appears in her hand. The armor that he carried as part of the family responsibility now belongs to her until she can find a person worthy to carry and wield it. The scene changes suddenly, she is tied to a stake in the center of a circle of Ornos. The leader of the group is asking her where the armor carriers are; they have no idea that she and her brother held the armors. When she refuses to tell him anything he presses the iron brand into the flesh of her back and sides. Soon, she will be slashed with daggers and swords and then either sold or killed. As she feels the last, hottest brand bite into her flesh she hears a voice in her head, one that is vaguely familiar, but not of this time. Xanai. Xanai!  
  
"Xanai!" The girl jerks awake and stares right into the eyes of Sage of the Halo. The other Ronins are standing behind him along with Yuli. Sage is holding onto her shoulders again and is looking into her eyes for any indication of what had just happened. The whole group had gathered downstairs after Sage had put Xanai to bed and had agreed that this was a vacation and that everyone deserved some time off. The warlords, Yuri, Anubis and Kayura had all gone to see a movie in town. The Slayers, with the exception of Mia, had gone to the video arcade to show Artemis and Jshano the joy of video games. The Ronins had thought it best to stay at the house and catch up with each other. Just as they had all agreed on what they were going to do, and just as everyone left, a few wolves started howling and some horses in the back started kicking down their stall doors. White Blaze had also gone a little berserk and broken a few things that Ryo is sure are priceless. All the lights in the house had gone off and the house had become unnaturally dark. And then they had heard the screams. Sage had raced up the stairs toward his room, leaving the others in the dust. By the time they got there Xanai was upright and was trying to fight Sage as he tried to wake her. She finally woke and stared at everyone in the room with confusion in her eyes and finally recognized them and the situation. Xanai sits up in bed now, absentmindedly adjusting her shoulders, rolling them back and forth distractedly. Sage senses that something is wrong with her, but he doesn't know yet. By the time Xanai realizes that he is instinctively scanning her, it is too late to salvage her pride. Tears gather in her eyes as Sage's expression changes, going from meditative to shock to disgust and pain in only a few seconds. Uncaring about the fact that she is exceptionally weak, Xanai gets out of the bed faster then they can stop her and runs out the door, tears falling freely down her face. Sage recovers and follows her through the door without a word to the others. The other Ronins follow him out hoping to find out exactly what is going on. He follows her signature to the river behind the house and finds her sitting on the bank, knees to chest and her head resting on her knees. He is about to announce his presence when a dark shadow passes overhead. Xanai's head snaps up and she looks at the shadow. Her eyes narrow and the tears stop flowing, she is angry now. The other Ronins have caught up to Sage and they all watch and wait for something to happen. They watch in awe as the creature that caused the shadow lands softly in the clearing by the river. It looks like the creature they fought yesterday except for two major differences, the first being the fact that this thing seems to have more delicate scales then the others and the big, giant thing that no one could miss.it has wings. Giant, bat-like wings. Xanai stands as if to greet the creature, but she stands in a defensive position, as if she is anticipating an attack. A low growl works its way up from her chest. The creature speaks in a voice that sounds like it has been soaked in honey. "Now Xanai, is that any way to treat an old friend?" Xanai's voice is angry and bitter. "Friend? Is that what they call it now when you kill someone's brother and then torture them before selling them to the most horrific brothel in all the realms? I am no friend of yours, never forget that." The creature laughs cruelly, "We only did that because you wouldn't tell us what we wanted to know. As for your brother, well, he was expendable." Xanai's eyes fairly snap with the fire of anger. The creature gives her no time to fight, he attacks her. His blades cut toward her so quickly no one can tell if he is actually hitting her until he stops for a breather. They see that he wasn't hitting her so much as he was slicing her clothing apart. She stands there with no top on; her tee shirt has been completely shredded by the creature's blades and she stands there in a sport's bra. The Ronins gasp in horror when they see her back. It is completely covered in scars and burns, brands and blade cuts. It is no wonder Sage looked horrified when he assessed her wounds if this is what greeted him. Xanai looks over toward the Ronins, she knows they are there. She quickly looks up at the creature and the Ronins see tears in her eyes, but they are angry tears, outraged tears, and embarrassed tears. She hadn't wanted Sage to ever see this. She loses her temper completely. The Ronins see a very familiar sub-armor appear on her body, taking the scars out of sight, but teaching them something new about this classmate of Sage's. "ARMOR OF DARKNESS!" Black nothingness surrounds her lithe body for only a few moments before it dissipates, leaving in its wake something familiar and frightening. Xanai stands there in full battle armor, it is black as tar with red streaks and veins running through it, enhancing it trim lines and weightless appearance. Her long silver hair is blowing in the wind from under the helm and her eyes glow much like they had the first time the guys had seen her. This time she pulls one dagger and a sword that is remarkably similar to Sage's. She puts them together and uses her ultimate attack; she is not in the mood for a prolonged fight. "DARKNESS FLAMES OF HELL!" The flames hit the creature opposite her and hit him dead on. It isn't enough to kill him, but it is definitely enough to make him run away to lick his wounds. Xanai stands there in her armor and looks on after him, and then she falls to her knees and slams her fists into the ground as she armors down. Tears fall and she hides her face in her hands as she breaks down into sobs. Sage walks calmly over to the crying girl and takes her in his arms and, after she gets over the shock of someone actually caring about her, she buries her face into his sweater and they just sit there that way as the other Ronins give them some room.  
  
Xanai is embarrassed when Sage scans her and finds her old wounds, newly hurting because of the dream. And it only got worse when Daanna cut away her clothes to show them what Sage had felt. Her anger had overcome her good sense and she had armored up, ignoring the risk of the guys finding out about her. After her enemy had fled she felt completely drained, using her armor's most powerful attack after so much healing was probably not the smartest thing she had ever done. She falls to her knees, ashamed at the tears that flow unbidden down her face. She is shocked beyond words when she feels Sage's arms wrap around her slim body; it is as if he actually cares for her. Having someone comfort her is an alien feeling, ever since her family's destruction she has been alone, and now there is this boy who seems to know her inside and out. She looks into Sage's eyes and sees the world of light reflected in them and in the moment before she loses consciousness she realizes who he is and smiles. My Soulmate.  
  
Artemis is quite upset about having missed all the action. It is four hours later; Sage had carried Xanai in about two hours earlier and no one had seen either for about that long. The other Ronins had filled everyone else in on what had happened. Everything except the part about her back because that wasn't theirs to tell. In the middle of their story telling, Xanai and Sage come down the stairs and Xanai sits beside him silently with her head bowed. When the Ronins get to the end of their story she speaks into the following silence with a voice that is barely audible. "Those scars are my legacy. They remind me of what has happened in the past. When my family was killed and my village was destroyed I was tortured and then sent to the worst brothel in any realm. I use the scars to remind me of my loss, of my twin brother who died during a battle with that- that creature. His armor came to me and I was left with a responsibility that was I not to have. I need these scars to remind me of where I have gotten from there." She falls silent and will not speak for the rest of the night.  
  
The next day dawns and the sky is obliterated by dark, ominous clouds. Xanai is no where to be found. Sage had watched her leave the house early, before the sun had cleared the hills, and disappear into the surrounding forest. He senses something is on the air. A blood-curdling scream echoes through the woods and Sage stands up straight. That is Xanai's voice. Mia hurries and wakes the others; she too heard the scream and knows that something is terribly wrong. Sage hurries out the door and runs into the forest, not even bothering to wait for the others; he knows that they will find him. He only runs about a half-mile before he comes upon a horrible scene. Xanai is there in a clearing tied to a tree with her feet about a foot off the ground. The creature from yesterday stands there in front of her with something glowing in his hands, they are small globes. Sage watches in horror as the creature pulls the globes apart and begins to squeeze them and Xanai cries out in pain. The creature laughs, "Why did you come here? You knew I would torture you before I killed you, so why did you come? You know, you and your brother were very smart to hide these armors from me, I had no idea that the armors could fuse into one. I also had no idea that the armor of your brother fused with your body after his death, regardless of the fact that you already had an armor. I hadn't known that anyone could hold two armors." A soft sound that Sage had heard only a moment before begins to get louder. It is a rough sound that wrenches his heart and causes him to abandon good judgement and armor up. "ARMOR OF HALO!" Once armored up, Sage steps into the clearing and looks around. The creature hasn't even noticed him yet; he is focused on Xanai and his fury at her. She is laughing at him. "What the hell are you laughing at you stupid girl? I'm about to kill you and you're laughing? Why?" "You are a fool Dannaka. You see only my armor and what it can do for you, you don't see the fact that the armor is mine. It lives within my skin and it will never leave me. My armor is a type of hybrid between the ancient Ronin armor and the Slayer armor; it is not exactly the same as either, but it carries characteristics of both." A cruel smile takes over her features and her eyes glint in the morning sun. "Which means that I don't have to be wearing it to use its full power." She closes her eyes and gathers the energy remaining in her body. When she finally opens her eyes, they are blood red. "DARK HELL FIRE!" Streaks of black fire burn Dannaka as he tries to back away hastily. He calls forth his many minions and his five main generals, creatures identical to the one that attacked the group before. By this time the rest of the group has arrived and everyone is armored up. Yuri has followed them, disregarding Kale's explicit instructions to stay at the house. White Blaze is with Yuli at the house. Zota releases Xanai's bonds and she armors up, but she does it differently from before. "COMBINE ARMORS! DARKNESS! CREATURE!" Phantom animals and black nothingness surrounds the girl and quickly she has transformed into the combined Dark Creature Armor. Hoshi, Tharios, Kento, Jshano and Artemis take on the first general, Hakan. Dais, Anubis, Kyoko and Kayura take on the next general, Hito. Kale and Jason take on Finor. Rowan, Cye, Ryo and Sekhmet take on Ganoal. Sage, Mia and Xanai take on the last and toughest general, Kikonk. During the fighting Xanai catches sight of Yuri and sees that she is completely focused on Kale, who is gradually losing ground against Finor. Xanai smiles and uses a technique she has only tried once before.with her brother. "Armor Combination Split!" Suddenly there are two Xanais, one in the Armor of Creatures and the other in the Armor of Darkness. Creatures, who looks very male, stays in the battle, but Darkness steals toward Yuri. No one else has even noticed what has happened, everyone is too involved in his or her own fights. Darkness Xanai hurries over to Yuri and taps her on the shoulder, nearly getting a fist to the face for her trouble. Yuri's eyes focus on Xanai and she blinks once and glances over at the other Xanai. She looks back at the Darkness Xanai and the Darkness Xanai smiles at her. "Here. I need to give you this. You are the one I've been searching for. And I've been searching for a while." Darkness Xanai hands her a small purple globe. The symbol of heart is emblazoned on the globe and glows a deep, penetrating purple. Yuri looks up at Darkness Xanai and Darkness Xanai smiles softly, showing a very sensitive person, perhaps this is what she would have been if she had had a good childhood, but then who knows? Yuri looks down at the globe and it begins to glow brightly. Suddenly she is wearing the sub-armor and she is finally ready to accept the responsibility of the Armor of Magic. "ARMOR OF MAGIC!" No one except Darkness Xanai hears her call for the armor, and no one notices her steal onto the field. She sees that Finor has Kale on his back and is about to slice into his throat and kill him. Yuri shouts and runs toward Kale.  
  
Kale watches the blade come down toward his throat and closes his eyes. I am so sorry Yuri. Please know that I love you, now and forever. Just as the blade is about to bite into his neck he hears the clang of metal on metal and opens his eyes. He sees Finor's sword quivering against the short scythe blade that hovers just above Kale's throat. Kale looks up at the new warrior, but he cannot see his face because of the facemask. The new warrior gets Finor away from Kale and crosses his scythes; then he attacks. "Scythe Cry of Magic!" Finor is taken off his feet by the magnitude of the attack and goes flying into a nearby tree where he lays still. The Warrior drops his scythes and the facemask lifts. A familiarly worried voice meets Kale's ears. "Kale? Kale are you alright?" Kale looks into Yuri's face in disbelief. "Yuri? What.how.Whaaa???" "Never mind that right now Kale, we have a fight to win!"  
  
Extremely pleased with herself for finding the appropriate wearer for the Armor of Magic, Darkness Xanai hurries back into the battle with Kikonk and hurriedly combines with Creature Xanai. Sage finally notices that there were two Xanai's, but he doesn't have time to dwell on that because Kikonk is attacking again. Xanai, now at full strength once again, motions for Sage and Mia to get away from Kikonk, crosses her Creature Staff and her Darkness Dagger and shouts for her ultimate attack. "Dark Creature Sonic Blast!" The sound of a thousand wolves howling deafens everything not wearing mystical armor. "Thunder Bolt Cut!" "Scream of A Thousand Eyes!" The combination of the attacks from Xanai, Sage and Mia is enough to completely destroy Kikonk, and it gives the others an idea of what they need to do. "Eternal Freeze!" "Iron Rock Crusher!" "Wolf's Cry!" Hakan vanishes into dust. "Web of Deception!" "Chaos Fury!" "Venom Fire!" These, along with the power of the Staff of the Ancients, destroy Hito with little problem. "Black Lightning Strike!" "Torment's Scream!" "Scythe Cry of Magic!" Kale, Jason and Yuri make short work of Finor. "Arrow Shock Wave!" "Super Wave Smasher!" "Snake Fang Strike!" "Flare Up Now!" Finally, Ganoal falls and the five generals are obliterated. Needless to say, Dannaka is not happy. "How in the hell did that new armor show up?! There was no tenth Dynasty armor forged so where did it come from?" Xanai laughs at him. "The same place the Slayer armors came from. The Builders made the final Ronin armor because they needed at least six on their side; it was completed by my ancestors and has been passed from family member to family member without ever being worn. If I had tried to wear it, it would have killed me. I have been looking for the rightful wearer for a long, long time and I finally found her in Yuri. You see, the wearer had to be both strong of heart and of body and of mind, I knew she was the one when I saw her hiding in the bushes during the fight. She was watching out for her husband and there is not a doubt in my mind that she would have died to keep him alive. There is much you don't understand Dannaka, and that will be your downfall." In a rage, Dannaka blasts the Ronins, the warlords and the Slayers until only Xanai and Sage are standing. Xanai had stepped in front of Sage just in time to deflect the blast away from him. She turns and looks at him over her shoulder and whispers so that only he can hear. "Sage, I want you to know that.I.I like you a lot and I had hoped we could become more then friends, our armors are the opposite of one another after all, but I guess that will never be. Good luck with your friends and school and things, see you later.my friend." Xanai turns and kisses Sage lightly at the same time leaving something in his hand. She turns quickly and runs toward Dannaka. "This is for my brother! The brother that you murdered! BLACK DRAGON SOUL STEALER!" A flash of black and silver light blinds everyone and as it, and their blindness fades, they look for any signs of the two warriors. Dannaka is nowhere to be found, but Xanai's body is lying on the ground nearby, right beside a giant crater. The warriors rush over to her and Sage kneels beside her body. She is barely alive, her breath coming in shallow and weak. She looks into Sage's eyes and smiles softly, again showing the young woman she could have been if she hadn't been tortured and hardened into a warrior. Artemis and Zota kneel beside her, but after a few seconds of scanning they both shake their heads, there is nothing they can do to help her. The group watches as the fire in her eyes slowly dies and her breath stops and then, her heart. Sage grabs her lifeless body and hunches over it, tears falling silently onto her face.  
  
The group turns away from Sage and Xanai with their heads bowed and tears flowing freely on many faces. They all armor down and most are silent in their grief. Kale holds Yuri as she sobs with grief, she had come to like the prickly girl, and besides, she saved Yuli's life, how were they going to tell him that she was dead? A flash of light off to the left has everyone turning and falling into a fighting position, ready for another possible attack. Instead of an attack, Mia and Kyoko see someone they both recognize. "Osiris!" The God of the Dead smiles slightly, "Mia, Kyoko, so good to see you two again." Mia asks the obvious question. "Uh, Osiris, what are you doing here?" "I am here to repay a favor and to get a trouble maker out of my realm. I think it is cruel to have the girl die right when she has finally found someone to love her, don't you?" This last is addressed to Sage who is looking up at Osiris with hope in his eyes. Osiris laughs and points at Sage's hand. Sage looks down at it and opens it.there is a black crystal about the size of his palm in his hand. "Put that on her chest, it holds her soul. Her ultimate attack imprisoned her soul instead of destroying it, and she was already starting to try to break out. Give her her life back young warrior." With this said Osiris disappears into a flash of light, and Sage looks at Xanai's supine, limp body. He lays the crystal on her chest plate and prays.  
  
Xanai is trapped! What happened? Her last attack was supposed to destroy her soul not imprison it. Damn! She starts beating on the inside of the crystal, she can't see out and no one can see in, she is really in a different realm that the crystal acts as a gateway to. Suddenly she feels the pull of her body and a familiar mind as her soul settles into her body once again. She opens her eyes and the first thing she sees is Sage and the tears that fall from his happy face. She smiles at him and sits up slowly and once she is up he kisses her hard and passionately and long. She smiles against his lips and says, "did you miss me dearheart?" Sage laughs at her antics and looks up at the group who surrounds them. Everyone is smiling at them happily. Sage helps Xanai to her feet and she scans everyone, healing any lingering wounds, before they go back to the house to get Yuli and White Blaze.  
  
Two days later, Mia announces that they are extending their vacation for another two weeks, since they had to fight. Xanai agrees to put everyone up for that two weeks, seeing as how the school term is over and Sage will be going home with the group. She frowns at herself, not wanting to think about Sage leaving. Jshano catches her frown and can guess what is causing it, but he has an idea about that.an idea that just might work.  
  
Nothing really big happens during the two weeks that the warriors are in New York, they become major tourists and just hang out in the city while Xanai vanishes into the woods every morning at daybreak, not getting back until late at night. No one knows what she is doing in the woods and Sage is worried. One day during their last week there Zota searches for her with his power and finds her in a cave about a mile and a half into the woods. He walks to the cave, she is so engrossed in her work that she doesn't see him or sense him. She is working on something very delicate and must concentrate with all her powers to complete her project before Sage and the others leave. Zota decides to let her finish her work and doesn't tell anyone else what he saw.  
  
Finally the day arrives that the warriors must leave. Xanai goes with them to the airport to see them off, and to give them their gifts. As they are saying their good-byes Sage hangs back a little bit. Xanai presents everyone with his or her gifts. She has made twenty-three small charm necklaces. One for each of the Ronins, Slayers, and Warlords and also one for both Yuli and White Blaze. They are bits of ancient metal shaped into the symbols of everyone's element. Fire for Ryo, Water for Cye, Rock for Kento, an Arrow for Rowan, and A Spider for Dais. Lightening for Kale, a Snake for Sekhmet, Swirls for Anubis, the Staff for Kayura, and a moon and stars for both Zota and Hoshi. A Glacier for Tharios, Rain for Jason, Eyes for Mia, a Sword for both Artemis and Jshano, an X for Kyoko with stars around it and a Wand for Kinu. Then she gives one to both Yuli and White Blaze. Yuli's has the symbol of courage on it and White Blaze's has a black tiger on it. Sage is the last to get his. Xanai steps over to Sage and hands him his. It is a beam of light, but behind this light beam there is a dark shadow portrayed by black paint. Sage looks at Xanai, she is wearing a charm similar, but the light in hers is in the shape of the protection symbol. Xanai turns so that she can see everyone. "These charms are made of a very rare ancient metal and were forged with fire and blood, my blood. It connects all of us together so that if any of you are in trouble the charms will all glow with the colors of your armor." "What about you?" Everyone turns to Sage. He is completely focused on Xanai and she is looking a little guilty. Sage speaks again. "What happens if you are in trouble?" Xanai looks down at the ground, seemingly fascinated with the asphalt. "They will glow black and then fade quickly. They are connected to me, but they are made for your group so that if any of you are injured the others will know." Her voice fades away under the intense scrutiny of everyone. She blushes, unused to being looked at so much. Hoshi pulls Xanai into a hug that Kento and Tharios both join and soon everyone is thanking her for the gifts. Sage stands back away from this. Finally, boarding starts and everyone says good bye. Finally it is just Xanai and Sage standing in the terminal staring at each other. Sage finally shoves his hand into his pocket and pulls something out. He hands it to her and says a hasty good bye, then goes and gets on the plane. Xanai stares at his back as he rushes down the corridor leading to the plane and then she stares at the box in her hand. She turns and walks away and back to her life alone in the old abandoned mansion.  
  
A week later  
  
"I can't stand this anymore!" Cye storms into Mia's kitchen and addresses Mia, Anubis, the warlords, Kayura and Kyoko, who are all drinking coffee and talking. Everyone looks at him, confused at how the easiest going of the Ronins could be this frustrated. He slouches into a seat and releases a heavy breath. "I can't stand this anymore! Sage has been impossible ever since we left New York! He sulks around here all day and then whenever anyone tries to talk to him about it he bites their head off! I don't get it." Cye crosses his arms over his chest and retreats into thought. Mia and the others look around at each other; they know what is going on, Sage misses Xanai. Ryo hurries into the room and gets everyone's attention. "Hey everyone you need to see this!" everyone hurries after him into the living room where there is a news report on the TV. Everyone is there, all the Slayers, warlords; the whole New York group. There on the TV is a special report about a man being beaten in New York, in the middle of the street. The live-feed shows five burly white men beating this one black man. There is a thick group of people watching, but no one is trying to stop it. Finally the helicopter shooting the footage catches sight of a figure jumping into the melee. Xanai throws one guy into the crowd and turns to deal with the other four. The news chopper manages to get a close- up of her face and the scar on her face is unmistakable. They are dispatched quickly, her fighting skills coming in very handy as she defeats them without actually hurting them. She checks on the black man and before long she is racing away because the cops are pulling up to arrest the aggressors. The news report cuts back to the anchor and Ryo turns off the TV. Everyone is silent for a moment and finally Sage speaks. "She won't be able to stay in New York for long. They'll be looking for her now as a vigilante." He gets up suddenly and leaves the room, leaving everyone else to stare at his back and wonder about the sudden change in his attitude. With a sneaky smile on his face, Jshano leans over and whispers in Mia's ear. Mia smiles and turns to Artemis. "Artemis, how would you feel about a quick trip?" Artemis looks over at her and a smile grows over her features as she realizes what Mia is talking about. "I think it is a lovely idea Mia, lets go now." Without another word both Mia and Artemis disappear in a flash of blue light. Jshano and Zota smile to themselves while the others just look on in confusion.  
  
Xanai is running faster then she has in a long time, she has to get out of New York before she is arrested for battery. She sees a flash of blue light and skids to a halt, staring straight ahead as Mia and Artemis come into view. Mia smiles at her shocked expression. "Xanai, are you leaving New York?" Xanai recovers remarkable fast. "I don't really have a choice now do I?" "Have you ever considered Japan?" Xanai stares at Mia and Artemis in shock until the full weight of her words hits her and a smile begins to grow on her face. "You know, that may not be such a bad idea." The three women disappear in a flash of blue.  
  
They appear again in Artemis's room. Artemis explains to a confused- looking Mia. "I want this to be a complete surprise for Sage. He deserves this, he really does." Mia laughs and looks at Xanai, who is very sober now. Mia grows worried; maybe something is wrong with her.no. Mia looks where Xanai is staring, she is staring at something in her hand. There is a small box in her hand with the symbol of halo on it, the gift that Sage had given Xanai at the airport, still unopened. Mia lays her hand on top of the gift and Xanai looks up at her in confusion. Mia smiles, "don't you think you ought to open this now?" Xanai smiles and nods. She opens it slowly and gasps when she sees it; it is a bracelet with a very special symbol on it. The design on the bracelet is a combination of the symbols of Halo and Darkness, Wisdom and Protection. Tears come to Xanai's eyes as she puts the bracelet on her left wrist, right over the marks that were made by the chains that held her all those years ago. Mia and Artemis smile and the three women start to plot Xanai's grand entrance.  
  
That night at dinner everyone sits at the table laughing and eating the great food that Cye, Mia and Rowan have prepared. It is Sage's birthday and he is turning nineteen, the perfect day to reveal the best present ever. After dinner, everyone goes into the living room to talk and just have fun. Sage really tries hard, but he just can't seem to stop thinking about Xanai. She has plagued his dreams ever since the day that they had left her in New York. The way she looked when he said goodbye, he should have stayed with her; he should have stayed to help her. His thoughts are interrupted by Kale of all people. "Sage, it is time to open your gifts.what is wrong with you anyway? Are you still thinking about Xanai?" Sage blushes a deep red, which of course means yes. Kale laughs and gets an elbow to the side from Yuri for his trouble. "Knock it off Kale. You would do the same thing if it were me." Dais jumps in. "Yes Kale, you know that if Yuri hadn't found you in time and you had gone back to the Dynasty you would still be sulking." Now it is Kale's turn to blush. Everyone, even Sage manages to laugh at Kale's expression. Sekhmet stops laughing and indicates to Sage that he should open his gifts now. One by one he opens all the wonderful gifts from his friends. There are great gifts, things ranging from a sculpture of the Warrior of Halo to a rare artifact taken from the Dynasty. Sage is elated by the time he gets to the final gift, which is a small one. He has almost managed to forget about Xanai for a while, but still her face sits on the edge of his awareness. He can hear her amused laughter in his mind, that lyrical sound that always made class easier to bear. He unwraps the gift and opens the box and looks at it in utter shock. A bracelet sits there in the box gleaming in the light. It is made of titanium and the design is one he recognizes easily. It is a combination of the symbols of Halo and Darkness, Wisdom and Protection. It is the bracelet that he gave Xanai at the airport as they said goodbye. "It isn't that I don't like it Sage, its just that, well, it doesn't look very good on its own." Sage and the others whip around to look at the stairs where Xanai stands in a black halter top, blue jeans and biker boots. She smiles, "It needs a twin, one that enhances its meaning and its beauty. It needs.something more." She walks down the stairs and hands him another box, his real gift. He opens it without once taking his eyes away from hers. He then looks down at the thing that sits in this new box, it is a bracelet almost identical to the one that he gave to her, but with one difference, it has their names on it. Beside the symbols for Wisdom and Protection their names are engraved into the metal, and in very small print on the inside it has a couplet written. Protection and Wisdom, Darkness and Light, No one can separate, no matter their might.  
  
Sage looks into Xanai's eyes again and sees love there, love that she thought herself incapable of. She smiles broadly, there is a predatory look in her eyes and Sage wonders what is going on. Then, he really gets the shock of his life. You know Sage; classes will definitely be interesting now that we can speak mind-to-mind. What? Because we are together again, and because our armors are the ones they are, we are able to communicate silently to each other. Also, the fact that we are attracted to each other doesn't hurt. Attracted to each other? Xanai, I'd say we're a little more then that. What are you saying Sage? I'm saying that I love you. Xanai gasps audibly, pulling everyone's attention to her and Sage, sitting on the couch together. Suddenly her back arches and the black crystal that revived her comes out of her heart, glowing merrily. She stares at the crystal as it sinks into her hands and begins to pulsate. The presence in the crystal is very, very familiar to her; she would know it anywhere. An image is emitted from the crystal and it grows and changes as it appears. Soon it is a human male that looks practically identical to Xanai. She gasps in shock. "Xavier!" ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- -------------------------------- TBC!!! Hehehe. Sorry, I just had to do it. Sooo.what do ya'll think? Please Read and Review. I would greatly appreciate it. Flame if you want. They will give me a good laugh. I will not continue unless I get at least ten reviews. I am so not kidding you folks. Mtrunks: C'mon, you know that you will continue it. Shut up you! Anyway, please R&R! 


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